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Bastelstadt
Bastelstadt is an industrial city located on the eastern side of the border between Selia and Ostiria. It is largely populated by gnomes and known for its advances in clockwork technology. The people here are led by the gnome, Kelsey Crushblast, a renowned arcane practitioner specializing in chronomancy. City Description Bastelstadt is built around the massive Mount Erstell at the edge of the Arak Foothills on the Selian border. It is made up of two primary segments; the Clockwork Observatory and the lower city. Emerging from the side of the mountain is a massive telescope, with five large concentric rings of metal cascading down from the peak, just below this on an outcropping in the rock is a sprawling network of roads and buildings that make up the city proper. The city is famous for its technological advancements and is the origin of the warforged unit, a humanoid construct designed to be a powerful warrior on par with any humanoid soldier, some are advanced enough to be self-aware but most just exhibit enough characteristics of such to fool passersby. Clockwork Observatory Constructed as a series of concentric rings surrounding the peak of Mount Erstell with gear-driven lifts between them, the Clockwork Observatory serves as the scientific and military hub of the city. The living quarters of the ruling class of the city are located here alongside Tinker's Hall, Phineas Crushblast's laboratory, and the Air Guard military hanger. Tinker's Hall The town hall of Bastelstadt is known as Tinker's Hall, a large building with its entrance on the penultimate ring of the observatory. The building itself is constructed into the side of the mountain, serving as a facade for the larger complex inside the stone. The facade of the building is elegant, the edges of the walls are lined with a ruddy copper-like metal that does not seem to have oxidized in the mountain air. The doorway itself is surrounded by a massive gear that appears to be connected to the mechanism that moves the telescope emerging from the peak of the mountain. Air Guard Hanger The largest hanger for the Ostirian Air Guard is also located in the Clockwork Observatory. It is here that all airships flying in and out of the city dock. There is no trading done here, as all airships are currently reserved for military use only, Phineas is a special exception. The hanger itself is located on the highest ring of the city, as a series of eight large walkways with a ship dock at the end, spreading out like a spider's legs each with a canvas covering leading to the central ring. Each landing platform is equipped with a mechanism to hold each airship in place as they cannot dock in the water, as an airship comes into land, two workers trigger a mechanism to cause the center of the platform to open as they guide the ship snugly into position. Crushblast Laboratories Phineas' laboratory is accessed on the opposite side of the penultimate ring from Tinker's Hall and sprawls into the peak of the mountain rather than directly behind the facade. The entrance is bland in comparison to the entrance to Tinker's Hall but shares a similar large gear connected to the telescope above. Inside is a multitude of workshops and libraries storing the research done within. It is here that warforged technology is developed as their bodies are made more and more advanced, despite the roadblock on advancing their minds. Weapons technology and planar travel are also researched here, the highest room of the laboratory holds the base of the massive telescope that extends out of the mountain's peak, the telescope itself serves as both a looking glass into the stars as well as into other planes of existence. One of the key tenants of the research being done in the labs is the study of other planes of existence without the need for the expensive forked rods that need be attuned to every plane of existence in order to access them. Lower City The lower city is accessed via an arcane tram system from the lower rings of the Clockwork Observatory. Unlike the observatory, the lower city is much more traditionally built, with sprawling streets and alleys snaking around the odd-shaped buildings indicative of gnomish culture. Large coils spiral out of gnomish tinkerer's personal labs as electricity arcs from one coil to the next across multiple blocks. Narrow mountain roads lead off the edges of the outcropping, snaking their way through the foothills down and out of sight, very few people come in or out of them and travelers prefer to come through the mountain from the west or book passage on the rare passenger airship. The Clockwork Run The Clockwork Run is the center square (despite it being round) and the most lively district of the lower city, at all hours of the day workers and tinkerers can be seen passing through the various taverns and entertainment establishments built here. On occasion, a factory whistle will blow and several beacons in the air surrounding the center of the square will light up and figures can be seen riding a broom of flying through these beacons in some kind of race or time trial game. * Ira's Revolving Bar: 'One of the most popular taverns in the Clockwork Run. The exterior is like that of any normal tavern but inside there is a large conveyor belt that snakes between all of the tables, bearing ale, wine, and all manner of bar foods. Run by Ira Slipspring. * '''Tink's Terrific Trial: '''A large warehouse takes up most of the eastern side of the square, with three openings in the upper floor, painted over the worn paint stating the warehouse's old purpose are the words ''Tink's Terrific Trial. It is from this building that the figures on the brooms of flying enter and exit. Inside, there is a winding queue that leads to a dock built on the second floor, where a participant must pay 50 sp to participate in the trial, where five riders compete to fly through as many of Tink's arcane beacons in the fastest time. '''Interval Rise In the center of the lower city, there is a raised piece of land known as Interval Rise, on top of this rise there is a magically maintained park, full of the animals that flourish in the forests of the Arak Foothills. This rise serves as both a place to get away from the hustle and bustle of city life, but is also magically warded against the smoke and smog that tends to belch from gnomish workshops. An ancient rotunda sits in the center of the park, this building used to serve as an isolated temple back when the area was controlled by giants, now the citizens of Bastelstadt have converted it into a massive library, deep in the hidden basement of the rotunda lies a secret chamber, home to the storm giant, Kolmar, a historian from the age when the land was called Ymirjar.